Guards for the sickle or blade of a cutter assembly typically have a forward prong portion and a rearward attachment portion. The attachment portion contains the means for securing the guard upon the assembly. In the prior art such securing means consisted of an opening positioned a predetermined distance from the respective prong portion. Each opening is designed and constructed to receive a bolt and thereby secure the guard in a particular position relative to the sickle or blade lying adjacent thereto.
Over the years manufacturers of machines with cutter assemblies have essentially standardized the relative position of the guard with respect to the remainder of the assembly. Such standardization efforts have resulted in two locations of the openings on a guard for attachment to the cutter assembly. Each guard, however, would contain only one standard opening arrangment and not both. Therefore, the purchaser of the guard would have to know which particular opening arrangement the machine required in order to purchase the proper guard.
To date no universal guard, having an opening arrangement compatible with both standardized positions for mounting a guard upon a cutter assembly, has been available. Such a universal guard would reduce manufacturing and inventory costs, as well as reduce the problems inherent with a purchaser having to know which standard opening arrangement a machine required. The present invention solves the problem by providing a universal guard having an opening arrangement which satisfies the requirements of both standardized mounting arrangements.